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Australian tarantula venom has been found to be more potent against certain insect pests than existing man made chemical pesticides.

The University of Queensland’s Institute for Molecular Bioscience has identified a toxin known as OAIP-1 that is lethal to termites and the cotton bollworm.

This OAIP-1 toxin could be developed into an environmentally friendly insecticide. This is important due to insects becoming resistant to existing insecticides and because current alternatives are being removed from the market due to ecological and human health risks.